Teaching note for product 9B10M030.

The owner and operator of Elizabeth’s Country Wares (ECW), a decorative country housewares and ceramic pottery business based in Woodstock, Ontario, was trying to find a way to increase capacity. Because ECW was her primary occupation and source of income, the owner was eager to take advantage of the growing interest in one of her product lines from some of her primary customers – member stores of a national pharmacy chain. She was unsure whether .....more

Selkirk Group is a family-owned brick manufacturer which has built an export business to Japan and other Asian markets from zero to 10% of its volume in seven years. The managing director of the company raises the question of whether it is time to change their regional export strategy and organizational structure in light of the Asian economic crisis and the reasons for their competitive success in both Australia and Asia.

Unicon supplies pre-cast concrete products to the flourishing construction market in Hong Kong. The deputy managing director, is evaluating an opportunity to pursue a "blanket" regulatory approval for Unicon's custom-designed concrete products with its largest customer, the Hong Kong Housing Authority. This opportunity promised to offer cost savings to both Unicon and this customer, although questions remain about the broader implications .....more

This business game allows participants to make 12 scheduling decisions under conditions of demand uncertainty. It is played with groups of 3-5 participants and does not require a computer.

The chief executive officer of a large concrete block manufacturing facility is preparing a report for the board of directors meeting. The plant is looking at expanding its production capacities and the chief executive officer must determine the size of the expansion and the sources of financing. The company has been experiencing an excessive demand for its product and the expansion seems like the next step. The financial sources, like in many emerging .....more

Cemex, a cement multinational from Mexico, has become one of the three largest cement companies in the world, through internal growth and a series of global acquisitions over the 1999 to 2000 period. It is a relatively small player in the United States with insignificant market share. It has had conflicts with the U.S. cement industry over its cement exports to the United States, being the object of a successful anti-dumping suit brought by the U.S. .....more

Selkirk Group is a family-owned brick manufacturer which has built an export business to Japan and other Asian markets from zero to 10% of its volume in seven years. The managing director of the company raises the question of whether it is time to change their regional export strategy and organizational structure in light of the Asian economic crisis and the reasons for their competitive success in both Australia and Asia.

Mr. Jose de Valencia must decide whether to recommend to his family and outside investors to invest a total of $4.5 million in a manufacturing facility to produce hand-blown, hand-cut leaded crystal housewares in the Philippines. This venture will be quite risky, since six Irish technicians will have to be employed for a period of two years to train the workers, and it is not known if export markets will accept high-quality crystal produced in the .....more

Unicon supplies pre-cast concrete products to the flourishing construction market in Hong Kong. The deputy managing director, is evaluating an opportunity to pursue a "blanket" regulatory approval for Unicon's custom-designed concrete products with its largest customer, the Hong Kong Housing Authority. This opportunity promised to offer cost savings to both Unicon and this customer, although questions remain about the broader implications .....more